Planned scholarship will benefit KU social welfare students

A graduate of the University of Kansas has made estate plans that will benefit generations of students in KU’s School of Social Welfare. Elizabeth Scott, of Independence, Mo., has established a $200,000 charitable remainder trust that will create a $40,000 endowed scholarship.

Scott received a full scholarship while attending graduate school at KU. She said it was important to her to support the university: “When people ask why I made this gift to KU, I tell them that nobody but my parents and the University of Kansas ever supported me, so of course I want to give back.”

Scott earned two degrees from the School of Social Welfare — a bachelor’s in 1961 and a master’s in 1969. She recalled the dedication demonstrated by her KU professors: “The faculty was just tremendous and very aware of all the students’ needs,” Scott said. “They were very helpful in getting people to reach their potential.”

Scott’s gift was established through a charitable remainder unitrust naming KU Endowment as the charitable beneficiary. Charitable remainder unitrusts provide an income to the donor during his or her lifetime and later benefit the charity of their choice. Her planned gift will create a $40,000 endowed scholarship for students in KU’s School of Social Welfare. The scholarship will be in memory of former KU professor Paul Brotsman, who taught at KU from 1949 to 1976. The remainder of her gift will establish an opportunity fund to provide unrestricted support for the School of Social Welfare.

Mary Ellen Kondrat, dean of the School of Social Welfare, said many of the school’s graduates return home to re-invest their education by serving individuals and families in their communities. “The generosity of donors like Elizabeth Scott creates a dual and ongoing benefit,” Kondrat said. “Students are supported in completing their professional degrees, and our communities are served by competent social workers.”

Scholarships such as the one Scott’s estate gift will establish make a world of difference for their recipients. For example, Fadra Mitchell is a graduate student in the School of Social Welfare. Scholarship support allows her to attend school full time without having to work, so she has more hours to devote to her family, studies and community. “It also provides me with a sense of accomplishment and pride,” Mitchell said. “It is my hope to someday be able to provide similar tuition assistance to a graduate student in the School of Social Welfare master’s program.”

KU Endowment is the independent, nonprofit organization serving as the official fundraising and fund-management foundation for KU. Founded in 1891, KU Endowment is the first foundation of its kind at a U.S. public university.